Reviews (page 8 of 8)
As SUBPOP as SUBPOP will get. There’s a clear sense of the Seattle sound that wasn’t quite grunge. I liked it but I didn’t love it.
First time hearing this band but thoroughly enjoyed it!
I dislike this very much. 1.5/5
I didn't know these artists. But it's not the kind of music I like, sorry.
Soul and Fire is a great track. Easy 90s rock to listen to. Oh the rest of this album is not great.
Not great.
Massively bland.
Seba don’t make me listen to this shite again
Early indie, like a Nada Surf predecessor
Some of the heavier songs and the more punk-rock ones are good, but the rest of the album is generic alternative.
Man, I really liked the vibe of this when it started, all schlubby singing and discordant chording. Everything was mismatched in a really compelling way. And seeing that this one is the first they did in a real studio also makes it endearing - I like these albums where a group stretches their muscles and gets a little money behind them. But for some reason this seemed to go on twice as long as I thought it would. It lost me, is what I'm saying.
After two tracks I was ready to write this off as Teenage Fanclub on percocets, but I was wrong. This morphed into a weird, ugly and intriguing beast, spackled with moments of rage and white noise. Awkward, angular and unsettling, it's not a comfortable listen, but it is rewarding.
If you had asked me a day ago who Lou Barlow is I could have told you he was in Sebadoh, Dinosaur Jr. and Folk Implosion. Of the three, the only one of those bands I've never listened to though is Sebadoh. Not sure how that happened. What a weird experience this album is. There was more that one tune that had me smashing that skip button pretty quickly. And yet... AND YET! We gotta talk about "Homemade." Holy shit. Go back and listen to that one if you let it just pass over you without paying much attention to it. Because that might be the best 90s era emo song I've never remotely heard of before. Like hall of fame level. I've listened to it three times already and it's going on a playlist. So what I've concluded is that when this band is a little more restrained, a little more quiet, and a little sad... I am a Sebadoh fan. "Happily Divided" is great. "Sister" and "Cliche" I liked a lot. Gimme "Think" all day long. But "Elixir is Zog"? "No Way Out?" Hard pass. I can't with the lo-fi spazz out stuff. The songs that sound basically like Dinosaur Jr. without Mascis on guitar aren't cutting it, man. And that stinks. Once we finish this list twenty-four years from now if someone asks me to name a record from it that had the highest highs and lowest lows, all on the same album... my answer might be this one.
Hmmm Lo-Fi at it's finest? I can see some credit in this but a little to downside for me, I need to be invigorated by music and at times this makes me go "Yeah you're right, Life is shit" I liked the opener "Soul and Fire" and "Sisteen" But can't really understand why this one is on the list.
Ibland undrar man vem dom sjuke fan är som tillåter att sånt här kommer på den här listan. OK en del är behagligt långsam ful 90-tals grungeaktiga visor. Men en del är också några personer som gått in i studion och plingar och plonkar. Fattar inte den konststilen som bara låter som högstadiekillar i en musiksal.
I was listening to REM before this came up. The contrast is significant and Sebadoh don't come out of it favourably. Some reasonable songs but lots of noise. I don't think I'd feel happy listening to this mix if I'd made it.
I've never heard this band but based on the name, I assumed they were some kind of junk hardcore band. HAHA. Nope. Feeling pretty emo and I'm good with that. The distorted power chords remind me of early Weezer, Pedro the Lion, and Elliot. All bands that I love. But, here's the thing with emo. If it didn't hit me when I was an emo teenager, can I still really immerse myself in it? Not really. So I missed the boat, and as a result this is [perhaps unfairly] getting a 3/5.
I'm not real sure about this one. I don't mind the "sloppy" indie-punk vibe when it's done well, but I can't tell if this is sloppy on purpose or if they really just aren't good musicians. The album seemed disconnected as well. It's like they couldn't decide if they wanted to be Nirvana, or the Cure, or Radiohead. Still, there were some bright spots. I really enjoyed "Happily Divided" and "Think" - so it wasn't a horrible experience.
Cool stuff. Meat Puppets, Nirvana, Kurt Vile vibes
Ugh. Setting aside the bland first couple of songs that I was merely not enjoying, suddenly there were several songs in a row that were assaulting my ear. This album seemed to vacillate between the bleh and the horrible
I see no reason why I needed to hear this album before I died. In fact, I'm probably more upset that I heard it before I died. That's an hour I could have spent listening to something good.
I never need to listen to this again. Cliché was the only song worth anything. If I could give this zero stars I would, honestly. So much ugly.
Turned off when the harmonica came in. wtf
More enjoyable as the album went along. Surprisingly melodic, and some interesting chord and tempo changes kept me interested. I don’t think I’ll revisit frequently, but it’s a good mid-tier album with a few solid tracks I could see wanting to check out regularly for some listening variety.
Kind of good at times but not really.
Sebadoh are one of those bands that have been sprinkled throughout my play history but never really captured my attention enought o dig into. This album is ok but nothing really stood out.
Nope.
5/10. They did an excellent job of putting their most palatable song first.
A couple of songs were alright. But I don’t really care about the music on this album because I swear there was a high frequency pitch (dog whistle-esque) that rang out over the course of the entire album. It gave me a splitting headache and I don’t think I’ll ever return to this album. 2/10
I liked the first song a lot. The rest were hit/miss for me
a little too angsty for my taste but still really enjoyable regardless - 8/10
Not listened to these chaps before but fair play, it sounds like the 90s alright. I guess the manic, discordant tracks are more ‘interesting’ but the tracks with a bit of melody, like Homemade, are more enjoyable. 2.5
This was definitely a major meh for me. I didn't find it memorably great or terrible. It wasn't unlistenable, but generally I didn't enjoy it. Exceptions are my fave tracks: "Two Years Two Days" and "Elixir is Zog". Some fun sounds in there, but I just don't really get the appeal of this one. Decent guitar, okay vocals, but not my style. At least mercifully short.
Nothing new for me. A little boring ...
Grungy, jangly, noisy, ramshackle collection of songs. The album starts out strong and has some moments of real creativity and fun, but a little dissonance goes a long way. On the whole I enjoyed it, but it really is a lot. Fave Songs: Soul and Fire, Two Years Two Days, Cliche, Happily Divided, Think (Let Tomorrow Bee)
Listened Before? N Pretty good indie record. I'd never heard of these guys before but it seems it's a member of Dinosaur Jr.'s side project. You can't get much more hipster than that lol. I didn't hate it at all. Some parts are abrasive but you have to understand they probably weren't taking it all that seriously. Parts sound like Nirvana without distortion, which shouldn't be a surprise for 1993. Added to Library? N Songs added to Playlist: Soul and Fire
90’er punk rock, garage, svingende
Ja, punten voor sebadoh, niet het volle pond, ik bijt namelijk op mijn lip om niet te zeggen dat "andere albums...". Dan kom ik misschien wel als een zeurpiet over..
Dit album laat zich omschrijven als manisch-depressief; van geweldige tracks tot verschrikkelijke 'experimenten'. Ergens tussen 2 en 3 sterren, maar omdat ik me toch flink heb zitten ergeren, dan maar 2!
Nee, dit was te onsamenhangend voor mij.
Sebadoh is een van mijn favoriete bands. Dit is een van hun eerdere platen, toen ze nog een bandlid aan boord hadden die het voor mij eigenlijk wel verpest om van dit album te kunnen genieten. 2/3e van de nummers vind ik geweldig, de andere 1/3e (van dat specifieke bandlid) zijn niet om aan te horen. Die worden door mij altijd structureel geskipt. Toch heb ik wel weer genoten van de Lou Barlow nummers op deze plat. Dat blijft een held :-)
Leuke stem. Daar wil ik het maar bij houden.
decent
Quite alright
Those nerds know their way around a song, yep.
Cheap-sounding short songs that might be your thing, if you like the scrappy-ness of bands like Pavement and Sonic Youth. I'd imagine opinions on this range from "sounds bad" to "sounds good because it's subversive" to "sounds boring despite being subversive" - I'm somewhere between the second and the third I think.
Feels like I’m in early 90s Seattle listening to a cross between Sonic Youth and Nirvana B-sides
ja amk eitt sampl þarna i interludei
Hressilegt indí, smá gröndsj og pönk!
I’m usually a fan of diy indie music but this album just fell a bit flat for me. Maybe I just need to give it a few more listens. I enjoyed the first few songs which seemed to have a haziness to them that I found interesting. The entire middle of the album ran together for me but I did enjoy the last couple of songs.
OK. I thought Sebadoh was somebody different, not punk rock. Haven't listened to too much of this before. Some of it works, but most of it seems very dissonant and tough to digest. Like shoe leather, I assume.
This seems like a jekyll & hyde album. They switch between a pretty mainstream approachable alternative vibe and then through doses of Sonic Youth across the tracks. Definitely enjoyed Soul and Fire.
When it's not boring, it's irritating. A few decent tracks hidden in a bloated tracklist full of filler.
Eh
Insuportável
Started off really good with with song and then fizzled out
3, abrasive but not bad
Was ok, nothing special, but had some stuff I didn’t expect. Should come back to 5/10
It was alright but I don't think it really clicked for me. It seems like it lost it's way somewhere in the middle.
An intriguingly eclectic batch of songs from the aftermath of the grunge boom in 1993. Sebadoh bring the goods as well as the strange and it should be appreciated for just how well-woven it can be. Favorites: Soul and Fire, Two Years Two Days, Happily Divided, Elixir is Zog, Homemade, Forced Love, No Way Out.
3.6 - These Massachusetts boys were playing near home so I decided to check them out knowing next to nothing about their catalog, except that they were connected to the 90s grunge zeitgeist that I grew up on. But they were unexpectedly cerebral, utilizing non-standard guitar tunings, math-rocky time signatures and strange chord progressions. Towards the end of their set, I had a mild panic attack and had to exit the venue in a hurry because I just couldn't make sense of the music and it was putting me on edge. I'd say this album displays many similar characteristics as I experienced that evening. For me this album is hit-or-miss. On one hand, I love heartfelt ballads like "Soul and Fire", "Homemade" and "Think (Let Tomorrow Bee). But these sweet moments are spiked with cacophony, like on "Fantastic Disaster" and "Elixir Is Zog." I've read that this is a breakup album, and I think the decision to incorporate equal doses of attraction and repulsion, feels true.
alright y'know
I liked half of this, but then it would go a little too far... I can see they were trying to push boundaries but it went from interesting ideas to just unpleasant listening. You can hear where this has influenced a lot of other acts though.
generic american indie
Eh.
First time I’ve listened to this album and can really hear the influence it has had on a number of subsequent albums. For example the first Snow Patrol record. A little bit patchy and maybe too many songs but has its moments
Passed on this listen first time around.... figured I would try it. Really liked the vibe. Rare Sunday four stars for me
There were tracks that I could listen to and enjoy and then there others that I had to just skip through. There were some tracks that had a snow patrol sound to them, about 10 years before snow patrol were known of. Not one I would listen to again, didn’t enjoy it
Ach ja ach nee. Die Dissonanz wird mir etwas zu hochprozentig ausgeschenkt. 1.4
I don't normally enjoy Grunge. But maybe it's the lofi angle that makes it more palatable than the others.
Not good
Boring
Good start but then it was kind of generic.
thought I'd like it more
This was simultaneously a weird and completely standard indie rock album. Most of the tracks sound like stereotypical indie rock from the 1990s but every once in a while there's like a screamo song or something which threw me off. Either way, it wasn't bad but not super notable either. Favs: soul and fire, fantastic disaster
Some okay moments
There are some real gems on this grunge alt rock album but it lacks consistency. I get that throw away snippets of ideas is part of the aesthetic - and maybe there is an honesty to that which has merit - but it isn’t as satisfying a listen as other records of the era. This could grow on me.
Ah the lo-fi grunge era. This doesn’t pack the pop sensibility of most of what made the Seattle scene so cool , and certainly lacks the punch that Mudhoney and The Melvins had. Still not a terrible listen. Some of the songs are great. Fav tracks : “Sister”
Didn't really care for this one
Pretty unique and interesting take on a classic 90s indie sound, artistic dissonance, all kinds of experimental guitar sounds, blending of genres. A little out there musically but solid as an experimental project
Not a band or album I have heard of. Wasn’t sure to begin with on this album. But by the end it did grow on me, a few more listens and I might give a higher score but doubt I’ll get time to go back to this one. I think that will be the case with a lot of these earlier American indie rock records.
6/10
Some really cool stuff. And some really meh stuff. It's pretty good. 6/10
Demonstrates a great use of guitar. I personally did not enjoy this album.
Never heard of them before
I don’t like every song on here but I do love enough of them to like this as an album
Angry, punk rock early 90’s. Didn’t grab me.
Different listen
first time listen, 4/5!
Not so bad
Listened to it once - was mitigated. Listened to it twice - confirmed it's a bit garbage.
2/5 in the end, it wasn't particularly good.
a 3.5 , first half is great
Yeahnah, not for me. Every time I thought I was getting a normal track, they did something jarring and weird. Fav new track: Think (Let Tomorrow Bee)
seemed average sound for the era.
Not for me. Don't hate it, some might like it but not me.
Blech. Not my favorite.
The album got worse as it went on. It is not good. No need to listen.
I listened to this once and had the weird feeling that there might be something here that I like but at the same time I couldn't point to anything good about what I was hearing. Listened to it again and the weird feeling that I might like it was gone. Completely gone.
The first song shows some promise but soon the acoustic, more melodic numbers end and more-aggressive in-your-face Black Flag style shouty and irritating post-punk begins, only to return to acoustic numbers a few songs later. Turns out they have three song-writers, who don't collaborate, and spread their material throughout the album equally. Anyway I'm not sure what this 93 release adds to the arc of the last 60 years of music. I guess "low-fi" is one of the 1001 genres and it has to be represented.
I’m not a fan of grunge but their jangly, discordant sound appealed to me. After a first listen I liked it better than their peers eg Pavement, Dinosaur Jr. Very similar to the Eels too in their softer songs. I also like how they slow down/ speed up the tempo for some songs.
So the first couple of tracks i'm like "wow this is the kind of lo-fi grunge I could have gone for when I was 14" but then it rapidly descends like they've run out of idea, money and hope with 'Fantastic Disaster' an absolute disaster.
I listened to a fair bit of early Sebadoh but didn’t really get much past III. I Think the earlier material is stronger.
Vaguely familiar with this band. Did not like the album at first, but it grew on me and I kind of liked it by the end. There is a charm within the dourness.
I like some later Sebadoh but I find much of this album annoying (and it seems intentionally so). Says it was their first album recorded entirely in a professional studio. Sure doesn't sound like it to my ear.
I like a lot of these actually, some quite different moods between some songs. Never knew what to expect. I like the slightly off vocals, gives it that punk edge. Reminded me of Dinosaur Jr and surprise surprise, the person who produced their albums did this one afaik.
Each song started okay and then I didn't like it, about 1 minute mark on average.
I enjoyed the album, there were some strange and interesting sounds created. I would listen again.
Good album. Interesting band.
meh.
An excessively experimental grunge album. Sometimes heavy experimentalization can lead to something amazing (Tom Waits) or something pointlessly tiresome (69 Love Songs). This falls in between. No great tracks, but you could tell they're having fun, taking influences from punk and grunge bands to create pieces that strike as peculiar. Not bad or annoying, but I wouldn't be eager to replay this album or recommend it to anyone anytime soon.
5.5
Lofi 90s guitar, sloppy vocals. I could see being into this as a young teen when it was new. Doesn't offer anything now.
Eh. Is okay.
Como álbum sí creo que es muy bueno, pero son de esos que tengo que escuchar muchas veces hasta sentir que me gustó de verdad. No hubo una canción en particular que me atrapara, pero sí está bien hecho el disco.
There were a couple of tracks that I really liked, but I can't get over the rest of the noise and intentional discord.
I was introduced to Sebadoh through III whichbI like a lot and Bakesale which I think is brilliant. So I was happy to see them included here and happy the album wasn't either of the two that I already know. Gives me a good excuse to delve deeper into their catalog. Well, Bubble & Scrape is nowhere near the brilliance of Bakesale and not as good as III either. There are some good songs here maybe one great one but too much Jason Lowenstein on this album and not enough Lou Barlow. I'll listen more but first impressions are that this is a 3 🌟 album
1 1/2
Enjoyed listening through. But no real memorable song.
I had a hard time connecting with most of the songs on this album. Nothing carried a tune really and the lyrics just disappeared.
Not really my jam. Some stuff was alright, but most of it was weird.
This is very bland in its composition. A long album of all the same song really.
Meh
Ok. Call me picky but grunge era has a sound to it that is a little, just a hair, out of tune. But when the whole band is out of tune it sucks. Especially when they aren’t even out of tune together. Anyways, this is a no for me. Not my jam.
terrible
A new band for me, and none of the music sounded familiar. The album squeaks in at an "okay" (3 stars). "Soul and Fire" and "Think (Let Tomorrow Bee)" might be worth a second list, while my least favorite was "Elixir is Zog"
nineteen ninety three
Not into it
Solid little album. Never heard of this band so pleasantly surprised.
Some of the American angst type songs were half decent but still too whiny for my taste. The heavier ones were a din.
The lo-fi indie moments are really good the shouty moments are not.
Not for me.
Angsty, American, Teen Rock. Like a cross between Nirvana and Green Day but nowhere near as good as either. Reminds me of every kooky, offbeat, coming of age movie of the late 90s/early 00s.
the list has finally paid off! finally, after all of the thes and 70s glam shite it has spewed out something i've never heard of and that i am bonafide enjoying listening to and will almost certainly listen to again and knowing how much of a sweat i am probably listen to the entire back catalogue. bonus points for the last track being as long as the rest of the album. i imagine this is what it must feel like for Gerry Mccain knowing full well he got away with it.
Decent lo-fi rock album. Flows pretty well, nice vibe, few good songs. Nothing outstanding tho, imo
idk. eh.
Weak indie. Like jets to brazil but with no energy
pretty rough 1.5
Nothing very compelling. Liked the first song and that was it, even after two listens
Saved Prior: None Off Rip: Soul And Fire, Two Years Two Days, Emma Get Wild, Homemade Cutting Edge: Cliche, Forced Love, Bouquet For A Siren Overall Notes: This album had little bits that were really good, whether that be the lyrics, guitar, or melody, but could never keep the momentum going for more than a song or two, let alone the full album. Felt like they took the DIY aesthetics of the Violent Femmes and took it too far. I'm sure there are tons of people who love this, but I'm not one of them.
Interesting, great indie rock feel, but I'm not sure any of the songs really hooked me.
idk lofi pop grunge doesnt do it for me. little too whiny
No me gustó nah, algunas canciones se escuchaban como si estuvieran rasguñando una pizarra. Había una canción que la guitarra me rompía los oídos
Fuck my mouth.
👾
good one 7.
Intentionally dissonant poverty tier indie rock. This is the sort of music that's easy to imagine someone creating, and even easier for me to make satire of. Shocked that people seem to like this. Is this really an example of best-in-class 90s indie rock? Grating and unpleasant.
Fine. Might listen again but didn’t feel particularly seminal. Minus one point for the shouty numbers
Quite enjoyed this. Reminded me of several other brands such as Eels and Pixies.
Vähän sekavaa meininkiä, välillä ihan hyvää pop-rockia, mutta sitten taas hetken kuluttua jotain sekoilua ja huutamista. Sekoiluista tuli mieleen Primus.
A lot of this album sounds out of tune with itself. I suspect that's the point and maybe goes hand in hand with being "lo-fi" but it's slightly jarring. Still, there were some good moments and in particular I liked the louder, rockier tracks which reminded me of Nirvana's "Bleach" album. I can hear similarities with other bands from the same era but it's hard to gauge how influential this album was and there isn't really much info about that on Wiki. Feels like the band might be more influential than any specific album, plus I'd say Dinosaur Jr were a more influential band than Sebadoh. 5.5/10
Good album with the influences it's had on bands that came after clear to hear.
I listened to a bit of the album. Enough to give it a 2
No es mi disco preferido de ellos, sorprende un poco que este aqui. Pero es un buen disco con algunas canciones muy rompedoras. Otras bueno...son demasiada ida de olla.
Bubble and Scrape was a great album. I have been looking to find a good indie rock album recently and this fit the bill perfectly. The instruments here were top-notch. The guitar in Sacred Attention was fantastic. I really enjoyed how different Elixir Is Zog was from the previous songs on the album. The softer tracks like Forced Love and Homemade are great and some of my favourites.
lo-fi was one of my favourite styles in the 90s, but Sebadoh was always somewhat eclipsed by Pavement. For me, Pavement are definitely the more essential of the two with the passage of time. Still. this album's a decent example of a great genre
Dull indie that doesn't really go anywhere. A couple of decent tracks save it from a 1 but pretty forgettable. 2/5
After the first track I thought I would enjoy this, however, the off-key vocals and discordant music did not make for a pleasant listen.
false
Interesting, often atonal prog rock (?) wavered on it a lot. Cool at times and a chaotic at others
Visceral energy mixed with lo fi angst. A sign of those times. It is just that the band did better than this, and also lotta bands did better that year
It's very nice to listen to something that sounds "grunge" besides Nirvana or Pearl Jam, but also has many experimental songs with a kind of metal that is good even not understanding everything. In short, it was good to know this album, even not being the best one on this list until now. Probably, I will listen to it again someday...
Very noisy and discordant for the most part.
That album cover is definitely a butthole. Some of these melodies were enjoyable. Let Tomorrow Bee is a standout. Otherwise I found a lot of this to be mildly unpleasant. I think if you're in the right mood you could love this album.
Indy chungo
enjoyable but drags after a while, sounds like a made up band lol
This was a pretty cool alt/grungy type thing
Decent indie
I think I've listened to some other Sebadoh album previously that gave me the impression they were intolerably twee potheads, but this sounded like more straight ahead indie rock. Didn't leave much of an impression on me at first listen, so went back for a second listen to pick out a fave track ("Sacred Attention", I reckon) and perhaps it is actually pretty above average indie rock? Gonna give it 3 stars for now, but I suspect more listens would get me to bump it to 4...
eh
Seems like basically every generic indie band from that era.
Punk. Randomness
Eh. Interesting listen to see the evolution of post-punk to emo but not my cup of tea
Folk Jam, but not at it's finest.
Never heard of this band before but I don’t mind grudge. This album is decent so far
Nah
Production: 8/20 Songwriting: 7/20 Innovation: 15/20 Presence of pure bangers: 0/20 Emotional response: 6/20 =36
Niet echt geweldig
Fun Sub Pop sound. A little yelly for me. A little Elliott Smithy, though.
couldn't get in the mood for this album, was a drag for me personally
Jangy good fun
Uusi tuttavuus, ja levyn alku olikin lupauksia herättävää, Pearl Jam -tyyppistä grungefiilistelyä. Eteenpäin mennessä meno muuttui raskaammaksi ja sekavammaksi. Osa biiseistä oli oikein kelvollisia, osa vähemmän. Peruskolmonen.
Satarts well, but when the trashy tracks arrived, I lost interest
Not really my style.
first song is the only good song.
homemade och emma get wild gillade jag. Vissa låtar är helt usla. Svårt mellan en tvåa och en trea. Men generellt så har dom ett gött sound som gör att det får bli en trea.
amazing find
I like the
no thoughts head empty on this one
Closer to a 2.5. Some songs were pretty good, and its definitley not borring, but it seems like a generally worse version of Slanted and Enchanted (which Im already not a huge fan of).
I thought I was all about 90s grunge, but I'd never heard of Sebadoh before. This album was one of the "low-fi" grunge records of the era that I missed. Was a neat album, but not something that will have the replay power of other grunge artists of the time. Definitely enjoyed it, but not enough to listen to over and over, thus the rating of 3.
Like the lemonheads without the tunes, like sonic youth without the nuance... rubbish guitar riffs played on practice amps. Not for me Jeff!
A masterpiece of the lo-fi sub-genre of 90’s indie rock.
Skönt lo-fi sound. Ganska likt Dinosaur Jr vilket inte är så konstigt eftersom Lou Barlow därifrån är med även här. Det är lite för ojämnt med ett gäng usla låtar, men Sacred Attention och Bouquet for a Siren är otroligt bra.